STOP BEING PARANOID!

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/06/09
Posted in: Fans, Rants. Tagged: , . Leave a comment

romney-fudge

WHILE  it’s true that the media tends to downplay achievements (sometimes for years), made by Eagles players, it’s just whining to say that they want to see us fail.

I’m a member of dozens of Eagles groups and I keep seeing Eagles fans who seem to think that the national media is supposed to expect the Eagles to continue what they did last year. Many fans already want our young QB anointed as a Top 5 passer. A large number don’t get why we aren’t seen as a Top 5 team. Fans feel the NFL is just not seeing how great we are. And that’s a joke.

Fact is, outside of Philly just about everyone considers our last season as sort of a fluke. Many in analysts say they want to see Nick Foles over a full 16 games. So ours is a team with ton still to prove. Paramount among those things is consistency.

Look:

>Two years ago we were 4-12, then we found a QB, and the following season went 10-6 with a loss in the Wild Card round. Now some fans here (many who expected 7-9 n 2013), are talking like we’re supposed to make a deep playoff run in 2014, and they get pissed if someone says “Not so fast”. 

>Three years ago the Redskins went 5-11, then found a QB, and the following season went 10-6 with a loss in the Wild card round. I can’t recall hearing one Eagles fan say that Washington would repeat as division champs, let alone make a deep playoff run. (And you know damned well, that you didn’t think Washington would be the team to beat in 2014.)

It’s the same situation, but because it’s us, it’s somehow different. C’mon man. I’m a fan, but reality is reality regardless of who you root for; and being delusional doesn’t make you a better fan, it just makes people realize what you have to say doesn’t count.

Truth: The Eagles have never been one of the NFL’s darling teams. If we suck, no one puts a silver lining on it like they do for some teams (Giants). When we stumble, no one makes our effort sound grand and valiant like they do for (Saints) some teams. And if we wallowed in mediocrity for a decade (Cowboys), no one would care what a Papa John’s employee thought, or attach an undeserved nick name to us.

We are just not seen that way.

But c’mon people, the national media isn’t “out to get us” either. They just don’t view our Eagles through green goggles. They have no reason to overlook apparent faults, or give premature credit. (Like I said before, our guys sometimes don’t get overdue credit.) Saying crap like “they want to see us fail” just makes us look like city full of whiners. The national media doesn’t love us, but they aren’t “hatin’ on us” either.

 

LeSEAN McCOY AND THE 7 YEAR ITCH.

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/06/06
Posted in: Front Office (F.O.), Players. Tagged: , . 2 Comments
Image courtesy of Zimbio.com

Image courtesy of Zimbio.com

RECENT NFL history has shown that you usually need a reliable RB to have a meaningful postseason. Distant NFL history has shown the same. Well in six years, with two coaches, and in two systems  LeSean McCoy has always produced. He is a reliable RB.

Over the next three years McCoy is due 28.6 million dollars. (Take note of that dead money figure!) The odds that he’ll see all of that money are pretty low. Especially given the decreasing demand for the position across the NFL. And then there’s the other thing.

All indications (right now) are that the Eagles will experience a salary cap crunch in 2015 which will lead to them asking players to take significant cuts, and/or releasing players outright in order to “trim the fat”. The 11.95 million McCoy is due next year, is the textbook definition of “the fat”.

I bring this up because we’re coming up on a kind of Eagles milestone here. McCoy is 1,066 yards away from being the Eagles all-time rusher. Here’s the list posted by a member of a group I belong to:

 

all-time rushers

 Pretty sad that fewer than 7,000 yards marks our franchise’s all-time mark, don’t you think? The thing about that though is look at the list. No RB up there was here for more than 7 years, and THIS is McCoy’s 7th year.

If he chooses to not eat a pay cut, what are the odds that the Eagles just shrug and pay him 12 million anyway? My guess is that they won’t and the result won’t be pretty. So far this season we’ve seen the Eagles play aggressive hardball with their players.

When DeSean Jackson was released without explanation, it wasn’t just fans and media that got stiffed, it was also the players. They were as blindsided as you and me, and didn’t appreciate it one bit. You could see annoyance in their faces when asked about DJax cursing out coaches and such. I have Nick Foles actually refuting those allegations. 

Remember what happened when Evan Mathis asked about a new deal? He was threatened with a trade and later sent a BS bonus check as a tongue-in-cheek “Fuck You Buddy”. (They would later sign his back-up to a 3-year extension.)

These are the kind of things that’ll make it hard to want to do a solid for someone. Especially when McCoy’s value depreciates each year, and what he gives up, he won’t recoup.

Those who don’t get what’s going on will suggest McCoy might “take one for the team” and eat a pay cut to help the franchise out of a jam. That could happen. I also could be elected mayor of Philadelphia, and Rueben Amaro could turn out to be a genius; but could and likely are very far apart in those cases.

I would love to see LeSean “Shady” McCoy retire as an Eagle without having ever played a single down in another NFL jersey; but it seems like economics are conspiring against that.

My nightmare scenario is watching McCoy become our all-time leading rusher this year, then seeing him open next year somewhere else. Seeing him (Reggie White) hoist a Lombardi somewhere else. Seeing him (Brian Dawkins) fire up a crowd somewhere else. Seeing him (Cris Carter) truly realize his potential somewhere else. Seeing him (LeSean McCoy)…anywhere else.

 

THIS WEEK’S MAGIC TRICK

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/06/05
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Front Office (F.O.). Tagged: , , , . 2 Comments
Image courtesy of utsandiego.com

Image courtesy of utsandiego.com

DID you hear that?  Your answer is probably “No”.

A warning shot was fired at Todd Herremans  the other day, and almost no one noticed it, even though it was announced. Tuesday morning, the Eagles signed back-up OL Allen Barbre to a 3-year extension; after just one year (and zero starts), with the team.

Is he versatile? Yes. Does he know the system? Yes. Does he provide quality depth? Yes.

All those ‘yeses’ makes this a good, solid signing. You’d have to be out of your rabid ass mind to argue with it. However what makes this signing worth my time to write about, is the handwriting on the wall. If you step back and take a look, it’s damned near graffiti.

According to Barbre “The Eagles reached out to my agent and we were able to work something out and get it done, and I couldn’t be happier.” STOP! Hold the phone. You have a 29 year-old, journeyman Offensive Lineman, with zero starts in 4 years (including being out of the NFL for all of 2012 before we came calling in 2013); and the Eagles reached out to his agent?

I already warned you about the impending cap crunch of 2015 right? And with ZERO comments refuting what I said in that article, I’ll assume we’re all on the same page. So let’s keep it moving.

With a cap crunch you need to either skimp on contracts or manufacture savings by cutting players. We all agree that this is Trent Cole’s last year here; and unless he makes the Pro Bowl, Cary Williams won’t wear an Eagles uniform and make 8 million in 2015. But you still need to manufacture some savings. Who else can you afford to cut?

Enter Todd Herremans. Herremans is due 5.2 million in 2015, but if he’s cut he only represents 2.4 million in dead money. That’s a savings of 2.8 million. If you can pay Barbre less than that 2.8 in 2015, you get a net savings. How much or how little you net, depends on what you pay Barbre for 2015.

It’s a smart play, and the way they did this signing during OTA’s was almost genius. During OTA’s because of guys in shorts, fans hardly took notice of the signing. I sat on this story for the last 2 days to track the chatter on it, and almost no one is talking about it. Like a good magician, the Front Office got you to turn to the right, when the trick was on the left.

This same move in (slow news) April would have led to guys like G Cobb, or Mike Missanelli openly questioning Herremans’ immediate future, which by the way is secure for 2014. He’s owed 4.2 but his dead money figure is 3.6. That cut would save us nothing and hurt our depth. So he stays and if he’s healthy, he starts. At least to open the season.

Last preseason Barbre played in place of Jason Peters and even kicked inside for Evan Mathis on later series in those same games. To my recollection he played exclusively on the left side. It’ll be interesting to see if he gets any reps at RG in camp and in the preseason.

CHIP KELLY’S NEWEST WEAPON

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/06/02
Posted in: Players, Special Teams. Tagged: , . 2 Comments

Cheer: Philadelphia-Eagles-Logo

 

HOWIE Roseman or Chip Kelly. Either one or both. It seems like they may have really nailed this one. While I’ve had issues with some of the moves made this off-season, this is one I think could be a real stroke of genius.

Undrafted rookie TE Trey Burton is a guy who has played RB, WR, TE and QB for the Florida Gators. Better than that, he was productive doing it against solid competition. That’s probably why he performed so well at the Scouting Combine.

At first his roster bio reads like he’s a modern day version of (Abington product and former Miami Dolphin), Jim “Crash” Jensen; but after watching some video and seeing how he moves ,  he’s a lot closer to a young Brad Smith than a  Jensen which would have been AWESOME. (Though so far all evidence says that Burton is no Kick Returner (7 ret, 105yds combined in 2012 and 2013).)

Still, I like him for two reasons :

1)     Schematic versatility.

2)     As ‘spot depth’. He’s a guy who can line up and execute a position if injuries hit one area hard during a game.

Odds are that if he only played one position, he’d have zero shot at making this roster and this article wouldn’t be worth my time. However given his versatility, he’s literally a Training Camp injury away from getting noteworthy reps at RB, TE, or WR.

Reps in Camp are Step One of making a roster. Step Two of course is enough production to make coaches shift their numbers crunch away from you, and to some other position. At the very least you want to be a trade option for team with injury issues.

However it goes down, I hope to see this guy get a series or two this preseason. Regardless of where he lines up.

MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/06/01
Posted in: Defense, Players. Tagged: , , . Leave a comment
Image courtesy of gcobb.com

Image courtesy of gcobb.com

FOR now it’s only OTA’s so I won’t get too ahead of myself here, but FS Malcolm Jenkins has caught the eye of his Head Coach in a good way. The exact word Chip Kelly used was “Outstanding”.

This is what I was talking about months ago when I was hoping that we would grab Jenkins if we didn’t get Jairus Byrd. The guy is just a solid ball player. Nothing flashy, just a pro’s pro.

If we can manage to shore up the middle of our Secondary, we can put a bullet in a problem we’ve had now for a half a decade now. That in itself will help the pass rush, and maybe allow Defensive Coordinator Bill Davis to be more creative with how he calls coverages on routes to the flat and on crosses. Those routes killed us last year, and artificially inflated opposing QB completion rates. Take a look:

RG# vs NFL 60% vs Eagles 61% and 48%

Philip Rivers vs NFL 60% vs Eagles 76%

Alex Smith vs NFL 60% vs Eagles 62%

Peyton Manning vs NFL 68% vs Eagles 82%

She-li Manning vs NFL 55% vs Eagles 46% and 64%

Mike Glennon vs NFL 59% vs Eagles 60% (Rookie)

Tony Oh no! vs NFL 63% vs Eagles 59%

Terrelle Pryor vs NFL 57% vs Eagles 53% (Back-up)

(Scott Tolzien) vs NFL/Eagles 61% (3rd string)

Carson Palmer vs NFL 63% vs Eagles 58%

Matt Stafford vs NFL 58% vs Eagles 40% (Blizzard hampered both teams passing attack)

Matt Cassel vs NFL 60% vs Eagles 74% (Back-up)

Jay Cutler vs NFL 63% vs Eagles 57%

Kyle Orton vs NFL 64% vs Eagles 65% (Back-up)

That’s 9 games where we gave up completion percentages of at least 60%, and every QB who would go on to reach the playoffs, looked better against us than they did against the league in general. You can’t live like that and have deep playoff hopes.

Jenkins will be key in fixing that. His ability to play CB and cover slots man-to-man, will free up the DC to dial up all sorts of things that we couldn’t dare try for the last 6 years. As I figured Nate Allen is ahead of Earl Wolff  for the moment for the SS spot, but I don’t expect that to hold up too long at all.

I’m excited!

OUR RB’S ARE RANKED BEHIND GREEN BAY’S

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/05/31
Posted in: Offense, Rants. Tagged: . Leave a comment

card-leseanmccoy

 

IT’S not news that NFL.com/NFL Network makes a habit out of slighting our Eagles, but this time they went too far.

I was having French Toast, and putting finishing touches on an article about Malcolm Jenkins (now pushed back to tomorrow), while scanning NFL.com on a second screen. Then I saw an article about where the Top 5 backfields ranked, so I checked it out. Mostly I wanted to see how they stacked us up against the 49ers and Bills. I was shocked to see the ranking:

Seattle

Buffalo

San Fran

Green Bay

Philadelphia

Total bullshit.

Seattle is of course, getting the Super Bowl champ nod; (even though if Lynch went down for any length of time Turbin could hardly fill his shoes). Buffalo has the talent, but age and health are question marks. San Fran is legit. There’s no shame in being neck and neck with the 49ers backfield.

But Green Bay? GREEN BAY!? Take away Eddie Lacy and what’s left is why they felt they had to draft Eddie Lacy. And NFL.com put them ahead of us.

The ranking makes this big deal of Jonathan Franklin averaging 5.6 ypc even though he’s a 3rd stringer, but then makes no mention of Chris Polk posting 8.9 ypc or the fact that on only 11 rushes he found paydirt 3 times.

Frankly, I think ranking the Eagles 5th is a slap in the face of LeSean McCoy, and a hard poke in the chests of Darren Sproles and Chris Polk. I’m used to the national media slighting us, but this was just a flat out insult.

MARK SANCHEZ AS THE STARTER

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/05/30
Posted in: Offense, Players. Tagged: , , . 5 Comments

players-marksanchez.550px.

WHAT’S this about Mark Sanchez “resurfacing as a starter under Chip Kelly”?! I’m glad that Sanchez feels rejuvenated and that the Eagles were the best place he could have landed (because no one likes flipping burgers); but I’m not at all prepared for any discussion that puts ButtFumble in the driver’s seat.

Don’t get me wrong! Sanchez is an Eagle now, so as an Eagle fan I want him to do well here; but by “do well” I mean hold a clipboard and wear a baseball cap, as Nick Foles goes on to challenge Brett Favre’s ‘consecutive starts by a QB’ record. I’m not being anti-Sanchez, just pro-Foles. (Besides with [Marcus Mariota] coming out of Oregon next year, Foles doesn’t need the aggravation.)

Right now we have a WR coming off of a devastating injury, and were folding in a rookie to replace one of the NFL’s premiere deep threats. Still with that, Kelly says that the Offense is light years ahead of where it was last year. So you’ll have to excuse me if I don’t want the boat rocked right now.

VINNY CURRY IS NO JOKE

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/05/28
Posted in: Defense, Players. Tagged: , , , . 4 Comments

card-vinnycurry

FLETCHER Cox is probably safe, but Cedric Thornton had better watch out, because Vinny Curry is making a move. Curry wants a role in the base 3-4 the Eagles use on Defense and not just a spot role when we go to our occasional 4-3 front.

Lost in the fact that Curry didn’t start last year, is the fact that he had 4 sacks while the three starters had a grand total of 6. (Cox led the starters with 3).

Curry has spent this offseason making his 280 pound frame trimmer and leaner, stronger and more explosive. Being that DC Bill Davis likes his DE’s up around 300 pounds, you’d think Curry would want to bulk up instead.

Unless there’s a change coming.

FG prompt2

 

 

Maybe we’ll be playing more 4-3 than we did last year. Or maybe something more exotic, like folding in some 46 elements. Whatever it is, there has to be a reason that Curry thinks NOT bulking up will earn him more time on the field. 

I look forward to seeing this play out.

 

EAGLES FANS: TIME TO GO TO WORK

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/05/27
Posted in: Conversations, Fans. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment
PHILLY STRONG JERSEY

PHILLY STRONG JERSEY

TIME to kill the Draft rants. Some liked how the off-season went, while some didn’t. That’s fine. It’s part of the process. But the time to complain about who was a reach, and where which guy played his college ball, has passed now.

I’m saying that to me, as much as I’m saying it to you. This is who we have. Now they need us to cheer on who’s doing a good job, and let our cold silence shove those who suck, out the door. Now they need us to close ranks and rally ‘round the family.

Points scored and points allowed. Games won and games lost. That’s how players know if they’re getting the job done. But there’s more to it than that. There’s our part of it. We’re the Fans. We’re the heartbeat. Ask Seattle about the 12th Man. Ask the Steelers. 

Players play the games, but it’s Fans that breathe life into the moments our players take to their graves and beyond. 70,000 souls screaming and streaming energy. Pouring, bleeding ourselves out onto the field of battle alongside our hometown gladiators. Somewhere out there Reggie White, Jerome Brown and Andre Waters are still comforted by the love you’ve shown, because love is immortal and knows no boundaries.

When we see our team is down because they’ve been dogging it, they need to hear us. Or when it’s a fistfight and they’re bloody, and torn, and tired yet still fighting, they need to hear us. They have to know that they aren’t alone out there, and that when they bleed, we bleed. Because we’re the Fans and that’s what we do.

That’s the Covenant. Our sacred duty. Guard it jealously and always take it seriously. Always.

The off-season is over for the players, and so it goes for us Fans. As I used to say when I played:

“Gentlemen! Time to go to work.”

OVERRATED and UNDERRATED EAGLES

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/05/25
Posted in: Defense, Rants. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment
Image courtesy of trendingplayers.com

Image courtesy of trendingplayers.com

 NICK Foles set the NFL on fire last year, and LeSean McCoy led the NFL in rushing. Both went to the Pro Bowl, in addition to 3 of our Offensive Linemen, and a WR.

It was a good year for the team as a whole. But last year there were some players who I think got more credit than they truly deserved, as others didn’t get nearly enough.

I won’t go into who I think is overrated because I’ve done that enough on this fan-site this off-season. If you care, then you already know. If you don’t, then why bore you with it?

I WILL however,talk about the teams two most underrated players:

DeMeco Ryans and Mychal Kendricks.

In terms of run support, they are the interior of the Defense. If the NT gets beat it’s on them to fend off Guards and Fullbacks and still get to the ballcarrier.

In terms of coverage, they’re responsible for a sizable chunk of real estate out there. Remember when Charger WR Malcolm Floyd got destroyed?  

Look at who’s in coverage, 17 yards deep, on 1st and 10. That’s DeMeco Ryans. Watch it again and look at Mychal Kendricks read and begin a dropback before the ball is released. That’s not chase, that’s coverage. Did you see who delivered he clean hit and who hurried to grab the loose ball? Take a look again if you didn’t

So much is balanced across these two that the system would break if they weren’t so good. Think about it. Sit one and replace him with Casey Matthews or any other ILB on this roster. Would you feel as good about the line-up? If you answered yes then you’re dumber than my cat’s ass, because it doesn’t work without those two.

Worse than Kendricks being treated almost as an afterthought, is Ryans having possibly his best year as a pro, yet being talked about like he was still not quite effective enough. That almost gives me rage issues.

I don’t know if anyone else sees it, or feels how I feel about it; but instead of waiting around for somebody to say it for me, I decided I’d say it myself.